Jontan Berggren dekes and dangles for a highlight reel goal

Credit to The Athletic’s Corey Pronman and Hockey Webcast’s Robert Soderlind for spotting this deke-and-dangle move by Jonatan Berggren during Champions’ League play today:


ChampionsHockeyLeague.com’s Liam Thomas reports that the goal played a major role in Skelleftea AIK’s win over GKS Tychy:

Continue reading Jontan Berggren dekes and dangles for a highlight reel goal

The Athletic’s Bultman speaks with Kronwall, Abdelkader about maintaining ‘culture’

The Athletic’s Max Bultman discusses the Red Wings’ need to “maintain their culture” should Henrik Zetterberg no longer be able to play hockey:

Trying to define a culture can feel impossible. At its simplest, the concept boils down to the phrase Kronwall used: “That’s what you did.”

How it translates to younger players, however, may not be so simple.

“I think it (varies) from individual to individual,” Kronwall said. “Some guys you gotta talk to, some guys just watch and they just pick right up. And some guys, even though you do talk to them, it takes a little longer. But eventually they’ll get there. In the long run they’ll understand (that) the sooner they come to grips with, ‘What do I need to do to stay at this level and keep pushing?’ the better off you’re going to be and the sooner you’re going to become a better player.”

There’s a distinction to be drawn between this type of leadership and the kind that comes from formal captaincy. While Kronwall could theoretically have a case for that job as well, this is more about setting examples and expectations — something that doesn’t require a “C” on a jersey, but goes a long way nonetheless.

These are subtleties, but things that have made an impression on Kronwall as he was coming up. Right now, at the start of a new season, that matters for setting a tone.

Bultman continues (paywall)…

 

Articles from an informal practice: On Zetterberg’s health, the Wings’ leadership group, Green, Kronwall and the jump to the NHL

After posting various Tweets and player comment videos, the Red Wings’ beat writers got to work hammering out articles regarding today’s informal practice at Little Caesars Arena.

Today’s main topic of discussion was the future of Henrik Zetterberg, as noted by the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan…

“I’m not optimistic because it’s the National Hockey League and he has to compete against players that are younger than him, and they’ve been in the gym every day all summer,” [Wings GM Ken] Holland said. “That’s what athletes in our sport do. He’s not able to do that.

“He’s not able to train at a level that he needs to train at in order to be at the level to play in the league. If he were able to train, he would have trained all May, June, July. He hasn’t trained at all. So, I’m waiting to see what Dr. Cammisa says. We’re waiting for Hank to go in and see Dr. Camissa and see what he (Dr. Cammisa) recommends, suggests, thinks.”

Zetterberg’s longtime teammate and friend Niklas Kronwall — who has dealt with severe knee issues himself — said Zetterberg must be able to physically prepare to play, before even thinking about resuming an NHL career.

“I know he’s had a tough summer,” Kronwall said. “He might be OK right now on a day to day basis but if you can’t train, it’s tough to play hockey at the level of the NHL. It’s just a reality. If you can’t train, nobody has that kind of talent.

“You feel for him, but at the same time, he has to train to be able to play and compete at this level, regardless of how talented or good he is. If you can’t train, it’s tough to play at this level. Right now, we can hope he can get some answers and hopefully some guidance to do something that makes him able to train again.”

And the Free Press’s Helene St. James:

Continue reading Articles from an informal practice: On Zetterberg’s health, the Wings’ leadership group, Green, Kronwall and the jump to the NHL

Red Wings, Fox Sports GO will stream prospect tournament

From the Red Wings, a little belatedly:

2018 prospect tournament to stream on DetroitRedWings.com & Fox Sports

Catch top Red Wings prospects in tournament play from Sept. 7-11

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings announced today that all games of the 2018 NHL Prospect Tournament, which will run from Friday, Sept. 7 to Tuesday, Sept. 11 at Centre Ice Arena in Traverse City, Mich., can be streamed through DetroitRedWings.com and FOX Sports Go.

Fans will have three ways to catch all of the action and watch Red Wings prospects including former first-round picks Filip Zadina, Joe Veleno, Michael Rasmussen and Dennis Cholowski. All games will be carried live on DetroitRedWings.com, subject to geographic restrictions. Users in the United States can download the FOX Sports Go app and stream every game of the tournament for free, regardless of cable or satellite provider. Red Wings games will also be streamed on the team’s Facebook page with no geographic restrictions.

Every Red Wings game will feature the play-by-play commentary of Red Wings radio broadcaster Ken Kal.

Detroit opens the 2018 NHL Prospect Tournament with a game against the Minnesota Wild on Friday at 7:30 p.m. and will face off against the Dallas Stars on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. The tournament will continue on Monday with a 4:00 p.m. matinee game against the New York Rangers. Teams will then be seeded according to the results of round-robin play for the final day of the tournament on Tuesday, with the championship match set for 7:00 p.m.

Click here for the Red Wings roster for this year’s tournament, or here to view a complete tournament schedule.

ECHL officials to officiate Red Wings’ prospect tournament

FYI, per the ECHL:

ECHL officials to officiate at NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City

The ECHL announced on Thursday that 16 ECHL on-ice officials, along with Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations Joe Ernst and Manager of Officiating Stephen Thomson, will work the 2018 NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City, Michigan from Sept. 7-11. This marks the seventh consecutive tournament that ECHL officials have worked games.

Debuting in 1988 with four teams, the NHL Prospects Tournament has expanded to now include eight clubs – Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues. Teams are divided into two divisions for a three-day round robin tournament, then ranked by their win-loss records for final placement in seventh, fifth, third and Championship games on the final day.

Ernst and Thomson will be responsible for the selection and scheduling of the officials for each game of the tournament, and will assist any playing or rule situation that takes place during the tournament. The officiating staff for the tournament includes eight referees and eight linesmen.

Continue reading ECHL officials to officiate Red Wings’ prospect tournament

Wings video: Kronwall, Abdelkader, Hronek, Svechnikov speak with the media

Updated 3x with Justin Abdelkader, Filip Hronek and Niklas Kronwall’s comments @ 2:20 PM: Here’s Niklas Kronwall speaking with the media for 3:25, per the Red Wings, talking about Henrik Zetterberg’s fate, as well as his own:

Update: Here’s Justin Abdelkader…

Continue reading Wings video: Kronwall, Abdelkader, Hronek, Svechnikov speak with the media

NHL 19 will allow players to play as ‘legends’ Terry Sawchuk, Ted Lindsay and Mark Howe

EA Sports revealed its “NHL 19 Legends” trailer today, and Terry Sawchuk, Ted Lindsay and Mark Howe are among the Wings’ “legendary” representatives:

Some Wings prospect tournament player expectations

Here is the Red Wings’ prospect tournament roster, along with some of my tournament expectations for each player:

2018 Detroit Red Wings NHL Prospect Tournament Roster

# Name Pos. 2017-18 Team Acquired

11 Filip Zadina RW Halifax (QMJHL) 2018 1st round (6th overall): At this point, Zadina would be wise to show that his scoring prowess in the QMJHL will not require much of a transition period, as WDIV’s David Bartkowiak Jr. suggested. Zadina has superstar potential, but it may take time for him to adjust to tighter confines and heavier checking at the NHL level (at 6′ and 196 pounds, he should be able to hack it), and now is as good a time as any to make those transitions while continuing to score.

21 Dennis Cholowski D Portland (WHL) 2016 1st round (20th overall): Dennis needs to show the Wings that he’s physically and mentally matured as a defenseman. At 20 years of age, and standing at 6’1″ and 200 pounds, Cholowski is probably ticketed to play for the Grand Rapids Griffins as Filip Hronek appears to be “more ready,” but Cholowski could upset the call-up order if he has a strong tournament and training camp. It’s going to be imperative that Cholowski and teammate Vili Saarijarvi are the leaders on defense, in both offensive and defensive situations (i.e. on the power play and penalty-kill).

Continue reading Some Wings prospect tournament player expectations

Bartkowiak wonders aloud whether Zadina = Mantha 2.0

WDIV’s David Bartkowiak Jr. wonders aloud whether Filip Zadina’s Quebec League success won’t immediately translate to high NHL productivity, suggesting that Zadina may turn out to be Anthony Mantha 2.0–a player worth waiting for, but requiring some developmental time:

The Red Wings, as a club, are known for having prospects “marinate,” if you will, in the minor leagues before slotting them into the NHL lineup. Case in point is Anthony Mantha, who led the Red Wings with 24 goals this past season, his second full season with the NHL team.

Mantha’s road to NHL-level production is about four or five years in the making. Remember, it was Mantha, the 20th overall pick in the 2013 draft, who scored 57 goals and another 63 assists in his final year in the QMJHL. That was after two full seasons with the QMJHL’s Val d’Or Foreurs. He scored 51 points in his first season, 89 points in his second and then finished with that monster 120-point season. He was destined for NHL success.

And he’s found it, but it took two full seasons in the AHL and growing pains in the NHL before Mantha could be considered a real threat to opponents. He had to find a way to use his big 6-foot-5 frame and learn what tracking down the NHL’s fastest players is like. The jump from juniors to the pros isn’t exactly a walk in the park.

Of course, Zadina is not Mantha, and it’s not necessarily fair to compare any players, especially two players with such different backgrounds. But one thing the Red Wings might be looking for is whether Zadina can show consistent growth at another level. He only played one season in Canada juniors, so there’s no way to really measure his growth at that level.

Bartkowiak Jr. continues, and Zadina’s spot in the lineup (or the lack thereof) will be determined over the course of the next couple of weeks…